Marco Zennaro of ICTP writes: In regions where few people are able to pay market rates, there is little, if any, service without subsidies. However, when subsidies support telecommunications service, the funds are given to existing, typically monopoly, providers, and are often misused. This article defines a concept of how subsidy funds can be directed to consumers... I applaud the concept of giving consumers more power. I also haven't read the paper as I don't subscribe to expensive journals. However, I have to ask: what about the approach that is already widely tested and used in developed countries (and even India) of having a universal service obligation on telecomms license owners?